Braces, Orthodontics and Front Teeth Missing From Birth…What You Need To Know Before Having A Dental Implant

In this video I discuss the common things that I see with patients wanting front teethdental implants when they have had braces at the same time.

Unfortunately the all too common story: there is either too much room or too little room to place dental implants for teeth that are commonly missing from birth. Many people are born without their maxillary lateral incisor, which is the tooth just off of center on the upper jaw. It is very common for you or a loved one to be born without that tooth.

Another common issue is that the teeth just adjacent to the one that you need to replace have their roots tilted towards the missing tooth space. This makes it risky to place an implant because there is physically no room without tilting the root out of the way. The root can be hit with the implant during surgery.

I am constantly being the “quarterback” to make sure that the positions of the teeth before the braces are taken off are in an ideal position for dental implant replacement.

5 thoughts on “Braces, Orthodontics and Front Teeth Missing From Birth…What You Need To Know Before Having A Dental Implant”

I wish I was a patient, but I do not live in California. But an answer to two questions can help me a lot.

I have a cleft lip and palate. I have 2 teeth that were lost in surgery, 1 that I was born without; 3 total. 3 implants are in place and have been in place and UNUSED for nearly 10 years. They are teeth number 9, 10, and 11. My front tooth, and two teeth beside it. ALL of my missing teeth are due to my cleft palate. I have excellent health insurance, and I am trying to get them to cover the rest of the restoration. Not only for the obvious reasons, but because I am worried that I may be doing myself harm by not using the implants.

Firstly, are their any additional medical (cleft related) risks to having UNUSED dental implants? ie.. additional bone loss. (I have noticed a slight reduction of bone loss (at least in volume) in the area around my cleft and the implants.) All the implants are in or around my repaired cleft.

Secondly, are there any additional medical reasons that you can think of to necessitate the restoration to be complete.

I am working on an appeal now… and want to make sure that I can get it covered by proving medical necessity. The way that I see it, my cleft palate is a covered cause of loss, therefore anything that arises from that cause of lost should be covered… including the restoration, at least that is how I see it. Do I have a legitimate concern with the bone loss issue? is that a common issue?

Also, I love your website, I wish I lived in Burbank, CA, I would use you guys.

Thank you for your very flattering words. I would think that your cleft palate should definitely help you in receiving insurance benefits to help make the teeth on your dental implants. Your situation is more complex than an average dentist who only dabble’s in dental implant treatment. I would suggest you find somebody highly experienced implant dentistry to restore your implants.

Unused dental implants are at risk for bone loss. If you have implant that you don’t use, the bone is never stimulated so it loses bone density. This does not happen in all cases and situations. If this truly occurs that would be the worse case scenario as the implants would not be integrated when they were uncovered and you would end up losing all 3 dental implants.

It is going to be difficult to find a dentist that can bill medical insurance and actually receive payments for you. This is going to be a bit of an uphill Battle. You may consider paying for services and then trying to be reimbursed after the fact. Another option could possibly be a dental school in your local vicinity.

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About Ramsey A. Amin, DDS

Dr. Ramsey Amin has extensive
experience in surgical and
restorative implant dentistry.
As one of only less than 400
Diplomates of the American
Board of Oral Implantology/
Implant Dentistry (ABOI/ID)
he is considered an expert,
and board-certified in dental
implants. He is a former
instructor at the UCLA School
of Dentistry.

This website provides dental information and is intended only to assist users in their personal search for a dentist. You are urged to seek the advice & consultation of a professional before undergoing any procedure. This site is intended for use only by healthy adult individuals. The site is not intended for use by minors, or individuals with any type of health condition. Such individuals are specifically warned to seek professional medical advice prior to undergoing any dental procedure.